Seeking tips for reducing belly fat
 

I know that there is no magic fix. My plan is to do lots of fat burning cardio, even though my body may hold onto my stomach longer than other spots on my body. But I'm looking for tips or things that people have tried that seemed to help, even a little. Diet or exercise tips woudl be great!!!

Some things that I have been doing:
trying to bring my navel to spine, shoulders up and back (good posture) all day long

When doing cardio, like on teh TM or elliptical, I try to not hold on, it seems to make me work on my balance and use my core to balance

When doing arm curls with dumbbells, I lift one foot off teh ground. This makes my core work, even though I'm "just" working arms.

I'm trying to limit my intake of wheat, my belly seems to protrude more after I've had a lot of wheat (I'm not sure if this is my imagination or not)

What have you found that is helpful? TIA!

The wheat thing isn't likely to be fat, but bloating. If something makes you bloat and cutting it out makes you feel better, you might be sensitive to that particular ingredient.

In terms of reducing FAT on your belly, you really can only do that with cardio and eating, just like you said. There is no way to spot reduce, so as you lose fat all over, you'll lose some fat in your stomach.

To get flat, toned abs, though, you'll need to do lots of core work. You're doing some of that, but there are a LOT of exercises out there that can challenge the core. I love About.com's exercise section, because it has clear descriptions of the exercises, sometimes with videos.

Here's the About.com Ab Workouts link.

You won't see all that ab work, of course, until the fat is gone, but extra muscle tone will not only help your posture and make you more balanced, it'll also rev your metabolism so you burn more calories at rest.

Drink water
Train low intencity before breakfast
After you’ve eaten do high intencity cardio
Avoid refined sugar
Avoid complex carbs
Don’t eat within two hours of dinner
Train with weights
Do some light cardio after dinner
Eat fruit
Eat vegetables
Increase protein foods like meat, fish, eggs, etc.
Take a multivitamin
Take a cod liver oil supplement
Run hills and climb stairs
Increase your intensity each workout
Eat leafy green vegetables
Keep active inbetween workout sessions
Swap your work chair for a fitness ball
Keep fitness equipment like dumb bells, etc. in every room of the house
Find someone to train with in the mornings
Find someone who is better than you at fitness to train with
Make fruit a whole meal instead of a snack
Replace television with active past times like walking, etc.
Join a sport team or a fitness class
Experiment with martial arts and tai chi and yoga
If you are doing weight training and cardio, do the weight training first
Choose cardio exercises that work the whole body, not just the legs
Try not to mix fats and carbs in the same meal (ie cheese and pasta)
Avoid coffee as it leads to bad diet habits
Drink green tea for its health and antioxidant properties
Drink more water
Drink even more water
Make committments to train with different people at different times in the week to keep active
Take the stairs instead of the lift no matter how you are feeling
Park your car further away from your destination or get off the bus early
Make a big pot of vegetable soup on the weekend and eat it for snacks during the week
Pre-cook as many meals as you can and keep them handy at work or at home for ‘junk snack’ times
Keep your ‘cheat days’ healthy by choosing resteraunts that have healthy foods like salads, meats and fish
Eat chilli - the burning sensation is your metabolism speeding up
Eat more often but not more
Eat six meals a day with a two hour spacing inbetween
Use a small bowl or plate to create the illusion of eating a lot
Replace chicken with lean red meat
Find someone you don’t like to do cardio or sport with as you will try harder to win and be more competitive
Experiment with mixing weight training and cardio together with circuits
Read as many weight loss books as you can
Avoid alcohol and late nights as it DOES impact on fat loss training and progress
Don’t hang around ‘junk food friends’ at times you know you will cheat
Go to the shops on a full stomach
Drink a glass of water before every meal
Avoid diuretic fat loss gimmicks as the weight loss will only be water
Keep a record of the foods you eat during the day
Measure your calories for everything you eat for one whole week (you’ll be surprised)
Start developing habits that foster weight loss like eating at the right time and not using food as an emotional crutch
Add more resistance to your workouts by increasing the weight, leverage or anything else you can to make it more difficult
Let your work mates and your family know you are trying to lose weight - they will support you
Turn dreams into goals by writing them down and regularly reading them
Read and research into everything you put into your mouth - calories and unhealthy substances can be squeezed into many places
Make short term goals and long term goals achievable and measure your progress regularly
Take days off - its ok to relax occasionally
Don’t worry too much about progress - enjoy the fitness
Train outdoors - sun and air are good for you
Watch shows like The Biggest Loser for inspiration
Read about the health problems associated with being over weight and get determined
Drink more water
Hire a personal trainer if you find it really hard to get motivated
If you are lazy at home join a gym
Do cardio with up-beat music
Don’t get sidetracked by gossiping to the hot guy/girl at the next treadmill
Buy a nice pair of shorts or t-shirt that you want to (realistically) be able to fit in by summer
Don’t be self concious at the gym - no one cares
Milk is good for you - don’t cut it out on account of losing weight
Just do it - stop making excuses
Use big compound weight training exercises like the squat, bench press, chin up, dip, military press and deadlift instead of isolation exercises
Avoid fancy gym machines and just use free weights
If your really bored with free weights, try gym machines for variety
Try and relate your weight loss goals to helping people - it helps
When you are struggling to take another step on your jog pick an item in the distance and aim for it
Read inspiration stories about sports champions
Attend sport matches like football, athletics and bodybuilding contests
Instead of weighing yourself use a tape measure
Use maths in weight loss - ie one bowl of iced cream cut out of your diet each night = 10 mins less on the treadmill tomorrow
Eat less man made food
Opt for organic foods and unprocessed things
Learn that you cannot ’spot reduce’ - fat comes off from the whole body not just one section
Muscle and fat do not co-exist well so build some muscle
Take spas, massages, etc. to help muscles recover faster - thus being able to train more
Never train through injuries or when muscles are still sore
High intensity training is harder and better - don’t believe hype about low intensity cardio burning more fat - high intensity keeps your heart rate up long after you leave the track
Stretch muscles that are sore and stretch before, during and after training
See a doctor before doing hard weight loss stuff
3500 calories = one pound of fat - diet is more important that hours on the treadmill
Skipping meals won’t burn fat - keep your metabolism burning by eating more often
Hot water will burn calories as well as being a Chinese medicine. Cold water will do the same
Replace a smaller meal with a protein shake - liquid food is better for you
Don’t wastre your money on pills or quick fixes - change your habits
Never sacrifice your health to lose a bit of fat
Be creative with cardio - running and biking isn’t the only way
Never train for more than one hour at a time
If you lose motivation, re-check your goals and ambitions and make them firm
Drink more water!



http://realwomensfitness.com/

I like weB.md flatten your belly it is chock full of practical health advice about every question under the sun, with answers. It's written by MD's. It's FREE. And this article is lifted from the ever practical Prevention.com. It features 41 ways to flatten your belly.

I, too, am sensitive to wheat
 

I, too, am sensitive to wheat and have an extra 3-7 inches on my waist when wheat is in my diet. Other sensitivities can do this but wheat is very common. I'm going to do:

1. the flat belly diet for a while b/c I like Mediterranean food and know it is good for me plus the good fats really help with belly fat.
   
2. exercise, even though not *required* I know I need it AND it builds muscle which burns fat even while we sleep!

The program I am following is called "YOU: On A Diet" The Owner's Manual for Waist Management and it is all about controlling the size of your waist (belly fat). It explains why we store belly fat and what to do to help get rid of it.

Basically in place of eating things made of white flour you eat things made of 100% whole wheat (100% whole grains), cut out sugar and high fructose corn syrups. (There's more to it than just that, too much info to share here without rewriting the book. LOL) And it's all from a scientific point of view by two doctors. You can probably check it out for free at your library.

I haven't been following the plan very long (more like on and off several times) but each time I switch from eating sugars and white flour products to eating healthier I can tell a big difference in my middle!

Good luck on your search for something that works for you!